in situ

[in_extremis]

WHO: Tony Stark, dangerously open
WHERE: Tony's Calibration Room
WHAT: You're stuck in Tony's head and good luck, buddy, he doesn't want to be there, either.
WHEN: During the Calibration Event (June 3rd - July 10th)
WARNINGS: Some body horror under the cut, but otherwise it depends on you. Digging for Tony's secrets is still going to be a challenge here, so if you work for it I'll assume you want to see that nasty stuff. I'll update as necessary.
Update: Horny, as usual.


There is bright, dazzling light in the eye immediately upon entering this room, another door directly in front of the entrance peppered with bursts of camera flashes and roving spotlights illuminating the fine, gold silk drapes around the open frame, flashing through intricate, stained glass mosaics set into the stone flanking the entryway, and glinting off of the golden struts where a velvet rope had hung but had been knocked carelessly to the floor, an open invitation. Through it is a sweet-smelling party, packed with beautiful people in even more beautiful clothes, laughing among the sumptuous chime of crystal in a warm, welcoming hall. The wall stretching away from either side of it reaches almost to the extreme edges of the room, incrementally decaying from polished brickwork to raw, cracked stone, tumbling down into rubble that litters the way further into this room around the corner from the rich door.

This building the door is set into is just a wall from the other side, built up into a dark cave of that raw stone. Tony is pacing behind it, nowhere in the cave welcoming enough to sit or linger, jagged piles of scrap metal where there wasn't cold stone lining the walls and scattered in piles that would have to be carefully navigated to avoid sharp edges glinting readily to slice into ankles. The lone occupant isn't dressed nearly as charmingly as anyone at that party that would have been such a good time, his once white shirt wrinkled and tattered and rolled up to his elbows, open at the collar and liberally stained black down the front with whatever dripped from his hands, thick and dark like oil and charcoal. In one hand, coated in this viscous liquor, his ever restless fingers worked erratically and mercilessly over a dark knot. The sweet smell of the hall is long gone here, overtaken quickly by acid and whiskey and a bitter, sick smoke.

Set into the back of the wall, there is a computer monitor, spilling a soft blue glow across the stone floor with a constant generation of lines of code in an alien alphabet that Tony throws judgemental glances at as he paces back toward the front of the cave. Most of the light comes from the back of the room, though, the roof of the cave opening to a bright, blue sky, where soft clouds make a slow march across and birds wheel freely, well above the curl of smoke that whisped up out of the cave and dissipated.

Comments

[theladyofwinterfell]

The room doesn't make much sense at first. It's a beautiful party and these rooms almost never show beautiful things. Sansa realizes that her normal drab and practical gown has fallen away to grey silk that leaves her shoulders bare. Her shoes are dangerously high, her hair is piled atop her head and when she touches her lips, rouge comes away on her fingertips.

None of that is interesting, though. Not really. What's interesting is the way the beauty fades to raw stone and there's a door set into the wall. She raps at it, wondering if anyone will actually answer, and busies herself with touching the rough stone in the meantime.

"The party is false, then," she says to herself. "Pretty and an impeccable forgery but false, somehow. It may as well be the court at King's Landing under Cersei but this isn't my dream. This isn't my room."

Still, the door with the party is inviting and this one is not. False or no, she goes back to it and steps inside, curious to at least see the memory that seems to be laid bare instead of the one beyond

welcome to choose your own party adventure!

[in_extremis]

The hall beyond the door was extravagantly expensive, all marble, gold fixtures and crystal chandeliers, from the welcoming lure of a plush red carpet up to the massively vaulted glass ceiling revealing a starry night sky that could barely be seen through the glittering lights reflected from the party below. As large as this space felt, it was densely packed with people who all seemed to be smiling and sharing toasts and dances, the mood celebratory but not raucous and clearly strained at the edges for it with some of the wooden restraint of proper society behaviour. These people were wealthy, and very used to it, and wanted everyone around them to be aware of it. While that meant no one was wearing any extravagantly flashy costume, they did all seem to be in some kind of mask, from a dainty silk tied around the eyes to a cravat tied up high over the nose.

Straight ahead, leaning roguishly on the curling banister of a sweeping staircase that dominated the back of the hall, was a man who didn't quite seem to fit the restraint, draped in a long, pale gold cape and holding a red and gold kabuki mask up against his chin, its painted visage a metallic man with an electric blue scowl that didn't match the glitter in the grey eyes behind it, and the ribbons that would have tied it around his head trailing and twisted around his arm. He straightened, turning his shoulders slightly toward the door and away from the group that chattered easily around him, letting the mask slip slightly to the side in his hold to peek around it and offer a welcoming grin.

If that seemed dangerous, there was another door to the left where less of the masked people were crowded. It looked distinctly shabbier, like it could not have belonged to this posh hall, but a more suburban neighbourhood. A few younger looking people lingered around it, not masked or dressed for the gala, but in jeans and t-shirts, mostly carrying red solo cups and sharing cigarettes before slipping away through the door.

A third option to the right stood open, but no one seemed to be moving closer to or beyond it. It was darker in there, what light there was cooler and more subdued than the warm glitter of the gala.

wow parties so much nicer than murder or anything

[theladyofwinterfell]

The party is grand and Sansa is suddenly glad she's dressed for it, even if her face is bare of any mask. She sees animal masks on some of the people and wonders if she'd be a wolf or a little bird. Most likely a wolf, these days; Sansa is more fierce now than she used to be.

She pushes through the party and while the figure on the staircase intrigues her, the quieter room intrigues her more. It's strange, to have a place where no one is partying and the lights are down. The other room had people in it, even if they weren't dressed the same, so it's this one she thinks is more interesting.

"Hello? I know I've stumbled into your memory," Sansa says quietly. "And I am truly sorry. I've been to a room like this but not yours. Whose mind is this?"

[backoff]

"Uh..." The blinding flash of light confused him almost instantly. Fancy parties were not his scene, he's not about the fame or the luxuries. Cloud would ignore any kind of interactions in that beginning part of the room. He wondered who would even have a room such a this. It might have lured other people into the party scene. Cloud goes deeper in, ignoring all the beautiful people, the flashing lights. He slows down when he believes that he's coming to the end of it.

The walls seemed to be changing into something different. He stops before it turns to stone. Cloud tilts his head curious looking up ahead to see what might be coming up next. He's one to not give up easily. If there's a way to get to the person whose room this is, he'll figure out a way. Cloud's about to do something stupid. It's not like he can truly get hurt, right? He reaches out to one of the scrap metal jagged piles. He's tense not knowing if it's part of the room or if a memory might actually come from it.

[in_extremis]

No memory to be worried about yet, but the delicate balance was disturbed, sending sharp toothed metal and junk sliding with a rattling clatter in this small space from the touch. In the dark a few feet away, Tony stopped his pacing to suggest, "Careful with that," not completely easy to see through the haze in the uneven lighting of the cave but clearly leveling a heavy stare this stranger's way.

[backoff]

Cloud watches as the sliding and rattling happens. He's careful to move out the way if it's about to come for him. It's okay if he get sliced up, blood wouldn't be an issue for him. "What if I keep touching them?"

[wearingthestars]

The party may be meant as a tempting lure, but it has Billy shying back. It really doesn't seem like his scene at all, and that hesitation leads him to explore what other options he might have. And as he makes his way into the cave he spots a familiar face which eggs him on, relief spreading over his face.

"Tony? What's going on? Where are we?" He tries to make his way closer, glancing back to follow that judgmental look, and frowning faintly at the computer monitor before turning his attention back to Tony. "Are you okay?"

[in_extremis]

The pieces weren't entirely coming together yet, but freezing long enough to squint at Billy's face and confirm that this was the Billy from Agra 10, not the one Tony had left in New York, told Tony something. He wasn't sure if his subconscious would produce this Billy yet, not when he still thought of him as that squeaky kid struggling with an identity. "Yeah..." he said slowly, turning back to his pacing, curling his arm up against his shoulder to squeeze his hand tightly around the dark lump. "I think this is a dream," he eventually offered, not sounding entirely comfortable with the idea, very aware that too much of this dream already felt orchestrated. Ty had already made him face a litany of his crimes in Dream Vision, Tony wasn't up for a return trip this soon and without even his own image of the Agrii to conjure, he wasn't sure how he was supposed to fight his way out of this one.

[wearingthestars]

"Yours or mine?" Billy asked, not sure if it really made a difference at the end of the day. This didn't seem like the sort of place his mind would conjure, but Billy felt reasonably sure he wasn't some product of Tony's imagination either, which meant he was somehow sharing this space.

"This place is kind of...uh...Tony...are you okay?" he asked again, eyeing that dark stain with a worried expression.

Depth? Boring.

[doubled_speed]

Listen, parties were TOTALLY Tommy's scene. But frankly? For the exact same reasons that they were for Tony. Because they were shallow. Because they distracted. Because the laughter and booze and bodies pressed against yours hid shit. A LOT of shit.

Didn't stop Tommy from moving to where the walls started to change and laughing.

"I don't know, Stark," he calls out, raising his voice, "hiding behind the playboy shit? Sorta old!"

put on your fanciest leotard speed

[in_extremis]

That was a little to close to the end of the wall for comfort, that voice definitely not one Tony needed any more of further back here. Close to the stone on the other side of the wall, Tony purred, "Don't worry, sweetheart, it's not you. It's a very exclusive party, limited guest list, you understand. Only the best of the best."

[plate_builder]

A party. This... strangely wasn't what he had expected. Perhaps he should have. Perhaps he should have expected this from Tony, a man who just needed something to distract himself.

Still, he finds himself distracted. Was this what Tony was used to? The man was so evasive about his own history, beyond the secrets that Reeve had managed to lure from him. He, at least, let himself be caught up in the noise and confusion of it for a time, before finally making his way back into the cafe. And almost immediately he cringes.

The scent makes his stomach curl. Familiar and saddening, and for reasons he doesn't want to think of.

"Well, the lighting in here is absolutely horrid for any form of work. I'd much prefer the party to it, but I suppose I did learn how to tune out such events."

[in_extremis]

"Then you deserve to enjoy yourself," Tony encouraged, appearing at the edge of the wall to cut him off with an impeccable smile. "Did you really come here to work? Please. You know I'm here at the service of your pleasure." Looking down to Reeve's hands, Tony gave a nod to encourage him to hold them out, he had something for him, then dropped the slimy, mottled knot of his heart into Reeve's waiting grasp.

I think I got the room dimensions right but let me know if I messed something up...

[brooklyn_boy]

Steve hates this. He hates the feeling of intruding in someone else's mind. Still, there is no choice. Quietly, he walks into the room and feels the familiar itch of being at a party too fancy for him to even understand, let alone belong at. He scans the crowd trying to see a familiar face. There isn't one that he can recognize. Just bland, beautiful faces that speak of money and status.

'Tony', he thinks to himself. And it's then that he notices the door set into stone.

Steve shifts through the party and toward the door. He's loathe to touch things and risk seeing something the other doesn't want him to, but there is really no other options. He closes his hand over it and pushes the door open to see...Yes. Yes, he was right. There's Tony.

In a cave.

"Hey there, Tony," he greets softly. "Working on something?"

absolutely all of it. Don't worry about it, you're doing amazing

[in_extremis]

The facade was really turning out to be a flimsy disappointment, making Tony cringe as yet another guest to this nightmare made their way around it, but his shoulders relaxed to leave his arms hanging limply by his sides, head tipped back, at the sound of Steve's voice. Of course Steve wasn't buying it, it didn't even matter where he had come from or that this wasn't the partner Tony knew back home. Every version of him had to be harder to fool than that.

"Always," he confirmed when he had gathered himself enough to deliver it with an easy smirk, and wove his way closer to wrap an arm around Steve's shoulders to help guide him through the sharp, metal teeth littering the floor. He was pushing the scarred, dripping heart in his free hand against Steve's chest before he was even thinking about it, making Tony hold it there in a moment of panicked hesitation before letting it go, still very aware that this was, effectively, a stranger. Kind of? "Don't you want to get the dress uniform out and hit the party? They'd love it," he encouraged.

[heeeyadora]

"Aaarg-" Catra growled, wincing in annoyance at the bright light, and scoffing a little at the laughter and chatter she heard inside, crossing her arms with a huff.

That smell though~ Catra sniffed at the air, letting that alluring smell lead her into the entryway as she sought after the source.

I know where you're going but this is the stage okay

[in_extremis]

The hall beyond the door was extravagantly expensive, all marble, gold fixtures and crystal chandeliers, from the welcoming lure of a plush red carpet up to the massively vaulted glass ceiling revealing a starry night sky that could barely be seen through the glittering lights reflected from the party below. As large as this space felt, it was densely packed with people who all seemed to be smiling and sharing toasts and dances, the mood celebratory but not raucous and clearly strained at the edges for it with some of the wooden restraint of proper society behaviour. These people were wealthy, and very used to it, and wanted everyone around them to be aware of it. While that meant no one was wearing any extravagantly flashy costume, they did all seem to be in some kind of mask, from a dainty silk tied around the eyes to a cravat tied up high over the nose.

Straight ahead, leaning roguishly on the curling banister of a sweeping staircase that dominated the back of the hall, was a man who didn't quite seem to fit the restraint, draped in a long, pale gold cape and holding a red and gold kabuki mask up against his chin, its painted visage a metallic man with an electric blue scowl that didn't match the glitter in the grey eyes behind it, and the ribbons that would have tied it around his head trailing and twisted around his arm. He straightened, turning his shoulders slightly toward the door and away from the group that chattered easily around him, letting the mask slip slightly to the side in his hold to peek around it and offer a welcoming grin.

If that seemed dangerous, there was another door to the left where less of the masked people were crowded. It looked distinctly shabbier, like it could not have belonged to this posh hall, but a more suburban neighbourhood. A few younger looking people lingered around it, not masked or dressed for the gala, but in jeans and t-shirts, mostly carrying red solo cups and sharing cigarettes before slipping away through the door.

A third option to the right stood open, but no one seemed to be moving closer to or beyond it. It was darker in there, what light there was cooler and more subdued than the warm glitter of the gala.

The smell was everywhere. It could have been the open bar along one side of the room where a man was stirring a fragrantly citrus drink, or the dozen servers doing wide circuits through the hall with trays of bite-sized morsels balanced carefully on offer, or the swinging kitchen doors where they would disappear and emerge that hardly let out a clatter from the sound of cooking but wafted the scent of fresh searing and baking through the room.

[hulkintraining]

Teddy enjoys a party as much as the next person. But his idea of a good party is dark rooms, laser lights, pounding music, and club casual. This party is way too refined and formal for him, and he barely lasts two minutes before he's fighting to loosen his tie. Which he does not remember ever putting on. But it does match the rest of the dark blue suit he's found himself wearing.

Keeping to the edges of the party, he scans the crowd of people, searching for a single familiar face. Although he could very well be stuck in the dream of a stranger. A detail he will deal with as it comes. Still, it doesn't take him long to end up near the furthest wall and to notice the decay as the wall shifts between brickwork to stone. He follows the path of the rubble to the new door. Which he knocks on. He might be intruding into someone else's head, but he doesn't have to be even more rude about it.

[in_extremis]

A knock was new. It was such a singularly formal tactic that Tony was tempted to think it was Reeve back for another visit, and quickly edged himself up to the wall to peer around it to the visitor. "Oh." It was a new tactic because this was a new person, sort of; one he hadn't seen here yet, anyway, and one who had a growth spurt out of Tony's purview, leaving him bemused every time he saw Teddy, not sure what to expect from him. The suit definitely wasn't helping him look more like the kid Tony knew. "Theodore," he purred in greeting, trying to regain his footing to set Teddy back on the correct path here. "Party's back that way. This is just where we keep the garbage."

[deal_me_in]

This isn't the sort of scene Cayde's used to. Self-proclaimed life of the party that he may be, this isn't the sort of party he's ever had the reason to be at. It's strange and although he might admire the dazzling opulence on blatant display, he weaves his way through the press of fancy party-goers towards the back and the doorway beyond.

"Hellooo?" he calls shamelessly into the darkness before boldly stepping across the rubble. Thank goodness for shin guards and sturdy boots! The Exo squints at the drastic contrast of the mess he's set foot in, minding where he walks. The sign of movement has him continue on, closer towards the light and the silhouetted figure.

And he stops and observes for a moment, fingers pulling thoughtfully at his metal chin as he considers his words.

"So this is cheery."

Nailed it.

[in_extremis]

Now Tony was getting really irritated, because if anyone should have been buying into the frivolity, he thought he could at least trust Cayde to do him the favour. "Yeah, we're thinking of putting in a jacuzzi," he muttered, stopping his pacing to lean into one hand on his hip, the other working the dark lump between his fingers like a pitcher winding up for a fastball to Cayde's polished head. "Did you miss your turn? You don't have GPS in the future?" he asked, indicating with a lift of his chin back the way Cayde had come.

[beholding_archivist]

"...I was wondering when I would end up here." Jon muses, fingers of both hands tapping lightly against one another as he takes a step further into the dark and uninviting cave. The unpleasant truth hidden behind a flashy exterior meant to achieve nothing but only to distract.

He isn't surprised. Tony maintains his mask even better than Jon has ever been able to himself, and yet the Archivist has managed to peak beneath it from time to time. Catch glimpses of the raw, hurting, sometimes vicious and other times insecure man. But he has also saw the smiles that don't exist merely for show.

Pausing in his steps to look about the clutter, Jon can't help but make a small noise of sympathy. It|s a different clutter from the one in his own mind, but just as his own this one is a busy one.

"You know, I... I don't have to touch anything if you'd rather... I mean- Your secrets. Your stories. I think I... I'd rather you tell me willingly. Whenever you're ready to do so."

[in_extremis]

And here Tony thought Jon really liked the flashy exterior. It wouldn't have been his first choice, he made that clear from the start, but he had Tony convinced that he had Jon charmed by now and Tony had been able to not totally dread Jon showing up for this nightmare. He would rather Jon was enjoying that party, anyway, not trapped in whatever horror show anyone else in this place had to offer behind the eyes or, worse, the nerve agent they were huffing in the tunnels to put them all to sleep not working on Jon's specific sleep problem and he was whiling away the hours alone, considering his options. Somewhere low on that list of possibilities was Jon bypassing the door entirely.

"Are you trying that line on everyone, or just the people who know it isn't true?" Tony replied. Jon appearing in the cave had put him on edge enough, he didn't have to come in swinging with such a bold lie when he knew Tony had to struggle for that option here. He might not have compelled Tony's darkest secrets out of him like he had Tommy, but he had proven to not have much patience for how Tony shared secrets with him.

[loyalspirit]

Wen Ning was quite taken a back by the the blinding light and sudden change of scenery. He didn't understand what exactly was going on, having never experience anything like this at home. This all have to be connected to his arrival at the new world.

He hid back away from the large crowd of people dressed in strange elaborate clothing. He sensed it was some kind of celebration. They all appeared to be mingling and enjoying themselves, but it was so different from the celebrations from home.

He backed away from it and instead found his way eventually into a cave. That itself felt more comforting then where he was earlier. As he trailed past the various scraps of metal, Wen Ning spotted a familiar face.

"Tony?" he hesitantly called out. He remembered their last interaction and wasn't so sure what to expect now. Especially when it seemed to be on his territory.

[in_extremis]

Really? Another? Was there something wrong with his party? Temba was proving resistant to Tony's techniques, but Tony didn't have a better tactic ready to keep these people out. Maybe a vow of silence, but that could have been a thought influenced by Wen Ning swishing in looking like a monk because Tony knew he was not good at keeping quiet. "He appears once more," Tony greeted, sauntering closer down the winding path between the scrap heaps and tucking his hands into his pockets. He knew he could easily scare Wen Ning back out with a little hissing, but that didn't seem like it would result in him fleeing into the crowd at the party-- he might just end up cowering at the other side of the facade. Instead of getting his hackles up, Tony tested, "Are you sure this is where you're supposed to be?"